Here are a few songs I enjoyed in 2014. I didn't listen to as many full albums this year, that's okay. I did hear some songs here and there that I thought were pretty rad, so I'm going to tell you about them.
The Decemberists - Make You Better
I have liked The Decemberists for a long time. Almost a decade at this point, which is kind of crazy. I first heard their single, "Make You Better" and thought "This doesn't sound like the Decemberists I love, its far too polished, etc" But I've heard it more since then and the slight changes to their sound haven't taken away from their old sincerity. There might be less jangliness, but underneath the polish its still them. The rock's gone through the jumbler a few rounds, but its still the same rock. There's still that cutting guitar, and Colin Meloy's intricate lyrics. "Make You Better" is about needing someone, that person needing you and how our expectations don't always match up to reality. Its a song I needed.
Broncho - Class Historian
There is an irreverence, an inescapable energy, as well as a snarl to "Class Historian" by Broncho. Their sound feels like The Kinks by way of Devo with a touch of Duran Duran but really none of those at all. Its a good song to jump around to.
Alvvays - Archie, Marry Me
I have a thing for bands with female volcalists, I also have a thing for songs that reference fictional characters. And this call out is especially good since it references the improbable Archie who constantly has to choose between his love interests Veronica and Betty. The fuzzed out shredding guitars and vocals that seem lazy yet desperate make "Archie, Marry Me" a song that would have fit in well in the 90's era girl bands.
George Ezra - Budapest
A song about leaving it all behind and starting anew if given the chance with the right person. A toe-tapping beat and Mr. Ezra's deep vocals that allow for bedroom harmonizing make "Budapest" heart-felt poppy song.
Hozier - Take Me to Church
This is a song I enjoyed greatly this year. It was a good song for driving to this summer. And I am happy to see how popular it has become. It is a spare, raw song that is filled with soul. "Take Me to Church" is about an intense romance, rather than a religious one. The piano and drums with subtle guitar work with Andrew Hozier-Byrne's voice truly create a truly electric mix.
The New Pornographers - Champions of Red Wine
Swirling synths pull you into "Champions of Red Wine", then Neko Case starts singing and everything is right with the world. This is a song for me tinged with nostalgia, of those parties that would devolve into anarchy of pouring drinks over anyone and everything in sight. Those are parties that end in drunken sing alongs and craziness. This song is harkening to that sort of cathartic party rage and the serenity that also exists in that moment. I love it.
Spoon - Inside Out
"Inside Out" builds slowly, letting the listener fall into the cloying beat before Britt Daniels desperately wails, "Time's gone inside out!" He is sounding the alarm, but yet the beat reasures us everything is just fine, and the dream continues. The entirety of Spoon's newest album, "They Want My Soul" is tightly solid. Its a compact album that satisfies from one side to the other.
Weezer - Cleopatra
Only Weezer could make such a catchy ode to a dying romance with an older woman. (Eat your heart out Simon and Garfunkle/The Graduate) The guitars shred and the band chants the years that have gone by leaving Cleopatra more distant and frigid. It feels like vintage Weezer - so good.
TV on the Radio - Happy Idiot
The Music video for Happy Idiot is a sublime tribute to Speed Racer featuring Karen Gillan and Paul Ruebens. So watch the video and then just bask in this delight of a song heralding the wonder of the happy idiot; safe guarded from worry, marching towards adventure.
Showing posts with label The Decemberists. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Decemberists. Show all posts
Monday, December 22, 2014
Friday, February 22, 2013
Where I find My Music
The other day I was
hanging out with a friend. She had a pandora station playing. I think the song
"Two Atoms in a Molecule" came on which led to me remarking, "I
really like Noah and the Whale." My friend asked me then, "Eric, where
do you find your music?". To which I glibly replied, "The
internet." and we both laughed. And my answer was half true - as vague and
as much of a cop-out as it was - I do find a good portion of the music that I
listen to on a regular basis from the internet. But the thing to remember is
that the internet is huge! Its like an ocean; you and I may have both been to
the Atlantic or Pacific in our lives, but that might be the only part about
seeing the ocean for both of us that was a shared experience. We were both at
the ocean, though perhaps you saw a shark and I got salt water in my eyes.
That's similar to how we're both on the internet right now, but after that our
experiences are probably differing in some way.
Noah and the Whale
2 Atoms in a Molecule
Whoa, okay, I think I"m straying a little bit from where I want to go with this. I'll try to reel it back in. Let's start off with a different question: where did my love of music come from? The answer to that question would probably be my family. I remember from an early age that there was usually some sort of cool and strange sounds coming out of either the stereo or the car speaker's on road trips. My parents introduced me and my brother to Bruce Springsteen, The Who, Van Morrison, Supertramp, Bing Crosby, The Cars, The Clash, The Talking Heads and a bunch more. Later on I learned a little about punk and ska from my brother with bands like Reel Big Fish, Less Than Jake, Lucky Boys Confusion, The Ergs as well as other stuff like REM, The Hold Steady, Ben Folds Five and Modest Mouse.
The Talking Heads
This Must Be the Place
From there I began to decide which bands I, myself enjoyed. Like They Might Be Giants, years before my brother and I used to rock out to Dr. Worm, but it wasn't until around junior high when I heard their song "Prevenge" on the radio that I realized that a) I loved this strange and wacky band and b) that they were the same ones who sang Dr. Worm and also that they did the theme song for Malcolm in the Middle. Or The Decemberists, who I first heard when the local college radio station played their song "16 Military Wives". For one reason for another that song has become one of my all time favorites, along with a large portion of their discography. In the past six or eight years my family and I have seen The Decemberists play live four times. They put on a hell of a good show.
The Decemberists
16 Military Wives
I think a big factor in where I or anyone finds music is whether you are an active or passive music listener. A passive music listener might be someone who listens to the radio every day and enjoys that experience, but for the most part takes it no farther than that. An active listener on the other hand might hear half a song played as the outro for a hotel commercial and immediately head to the internet to investigate just who might be the author or composer of said song. I realize these are gross over-simplifications and generalizations of how people feel about music and for that I apologize. That being said, I think I fall under the definition that I just gave of an active music listener. For example in High School my family and I took a weekend trip to the Detroit Auto Show. First of all, it is a really cool auto show that is definitely worth checking out, this is from someone who doesn't know that much about cars(one might say I'm a passive car driver...). The booth for Volkswagen was playing some very dancey music. More than that, it was dancey music that I had never heard before. I wrote some of the lyrics down and looked the song up when we got home. I found out the band was called Chromeo and the song I had heard was called Needy Girl. And with that I became a fan. I would still really like to see Chromeo live; I bet they'd be fun to see.
Chromeo
Needy Girl
Now back to the internet. At the end of high school I started frequenting a variety of blogs which hosted reviews and samples of singles from upcoming albums. How did I find these blogs? I'm not quite sure anymore. But one would always link to others, so discovery then led to discovery. Most of the ones I used to go to are now defunct, such is the shelf-life of most things on the internet. For awhile though I learned of bands way ahead of their actual release or rise in popularity. Such cases include Vampire Weekend and Bon Iver.
I am also almost always on Youtube. Either to DJ songs a few at a time for myself while I'm working, or to find awesome music videos to share, or sometimes one song links to another that is just as awesome and I make a note. Back when I worked at the radio station we had to do rotation hours to go along with our specialty shows. This was a little like having to come in for a shift at a job, except for the most part this was actually fun. You got to find out what new bands had gotten added to the rotation, and which ones had left to be added to the stacks. I tried to play one artist from the stacks that I was unfamiliar with each time I came in. Which is how I found out I liked Georgie James and Hot Chip and The Fruit Bats. And if I played a song I didn't really like all too much, well, no big deal it was only one song and besides there was an average of only 1-2 people listening during rotation. Oh! The other major way I have found bands that I enjoy has been through friends making wonderful mixtrapes/CD's. If there's one thing I believe in, it is the power of a good mix. It's like a letter written in sound, full of inside jokes, winks, memories, and love.
Georgie James
Cake Parade
Those are the ways that I find music. Although I'm always looking for more music, anywhere I can.
Noah and the Whale
2 Atoms in a Molecule
Whoa, okay, I think I"m straying a little bit from where I want to go with this. I'll try to reel it back in. Let's start off with a different question: where did my love of music come from? The answer to that question would probably be my family. I remember from an early age that there was usually some sort of cool and strange sounds coming out of either the stereo or the car speaker's on road trips. My parents introduced me and my brother to Bruce Springsteen, The Who, Van Morrison, Supertramp, Bing Crosby, The Cars, The Clash, The Talking Heads and a bunch more. Later on I learned a little about punk and ska from my brother with bands like Reel Big Fish, Less Than Jake, Lucky Boys Confusion, The Ergs as well as other stuff like REM, The Hold Steady, Ben Folds Five and Modest Mouse.
The Talking Heads
This Must Be the Place
From there I began to decide which bands I, myself enjoyed. Like They Might Be Giants, years before my brother and I used to rock out to Dr. Worm, but it wasn't until around junior high when I heard their song "Prevenge" on the radio that I realized that a) I loved this strange and wacky band and b) that they were the same ones who sang Dr. Worm and also that they did the theme song for Malcolm in the Middle. Or The Decemberists, who I first heard when the local college radio station played their song "16 Military Wives". For one reason for another that song has become one of my all time favorites, along with a large portion of their discography. In the past six or eight years my family and I have seen The Decemberists play live four times. They put on a hell of a good show.
The Decemberists
16 Military Wives
I think a big factor in where I or anyone finds music is whether you are an active or passive music listener. A passive music listener might be someone who listens to the radio every day and enjoys that experience, but for the most part takes it no farther than that. An active listener on the other hand might hear half a song played as the outro for a hotel commercial and immediately head to the internet to investigate just who might be the author or composer of said song. I realize these are gross over-simplifications and generalizations of how people feel about music and for that I apologize. That being said, I think I fall under the definition that I just gave of an active music listener. For example in High School my family and I took a weekend trip to the Detroit Auto Show. First of all, it is a really cool auto show that is definitely worth checking out, this is from someone who doesn't know that much about cars(one might say I'm a passive car driver...). The booth for Volkswagen was playing some very dancey music. More than that, it was dancey music that I had never heard before. I wrote some of the lyrics down and looked the song up when we got home. I found out the band was called Chromeo and the song I had heard was called Needy Girl. And with that I became a fan. I would still really like to see Chromeo live; I bet they'd be fun to see.
Chromeo
Needy Girl
Now back to the internet. At the end of high school I started frequenting a variety of blogs which hosted reviews and samples of singles from upcoming albums. How did I find these blogs? I'm not quite sure anymore. But one would always link to others, so discovery then led to discovery. Most of the ones I used to go to are now defunct, such is the shelf-life of most things on the internet. For awhile though I learned of bands way ahead of their actual release or rise in popularity. Such cases include Vampire Weekend and Bon Iver.
I am also almost always on Youtube. Either to DJ songs a few at a time for myself while I'm working, or to find awesome music videos to share, or sometimes one song links to another that is just as awesome and I make a note. Back when I worked at the radio station we had to do rotation hours to go along with our specialty shows. This was a little like having to come in for a shift at a job, except for the most part this was actually fun. You got to find out what new bands had gotten added to the rotation, and which ones had left to be added to the stacks. I tried to play one artist from the stacks that I was unfamiliar with each time I came in. Which is how I found out I liked Georgie James and Hot Chip and The Fruit Bats. And if I played a song I didn't really like all too much, well, no big deal it was only one song and besides there was an average of only 1-2 people listening during rotation. Oh! The other major way I have found bands that I enjoy has been through friends making wonderful mixtrapes/CD's. If there's one thing I believe in, it is the power of a good mix. It's like a letter written in sound, full of inside jokes, winks, memories, and love.
Georgie James
Cake Parade
Those are the ways that I find music. Although I'm always looking for more music, anywhere I can.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Favourite Albums of 2011
Hello everybody! Its the end of the year, so that means I get to tell you which albums I really enjoyed this year. Go check 'em out if you want to!
1) Gotye - Making Mirrors
2) The One AM Radio - Heaven is Attached by a Slender Thread
3) The Decemberists - The King is Dead
4) Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Here We Rest
5) Bright Eyes - The People's Key
6) Death Cab For Cutie - Codes and Keys
7) Okkervil River - I am Very Far
8) M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
9) Foster the People - Torches
10) Starfucker - Reptilians
11) I'm From Barcelona - Forever Today
12) Mates of State - Mountaintops
13)Of Monsters and Men - My Head is an Animal
14) Givers - In Light
15) Wilco - The Whole Love
1) Gotye - Making Mirrors
2) The One AM Radio - Heaven is Attached by a Slender Thread
3) The Decemberists - The King is Dead
4) Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Here We Rest
5) Bright Eyes - The People's Key
6) Death Cab For Cutie - Codes and Keys
7) Okkervil River - I am Very Far
8) M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
9) Foster the People - Torches
10) Starfucker - Reptilians
11) I'm From Barcelona - Forever Today
12) Mates of State - Mountaintops
13)Of Monsters and Men - My Head is an Animal
14) Givers - In Light
15) Wilco - The Whole Love
Monday, July 25, 2011
The Decemberists
Tomorrow my family and I are going to see The Decemberists, it will be my fourth time seeing them and I would say I'm almost as excited as I was the first time. They put on fantastical live shows full of energy and theatricality. At their past shows I have experienced getting eaten by a giant whale, participated in mid-show calisthenics, danced with a variety of drunk people, fought a WW I skirmish with half the band in the crowd leading us, and generally sung along to songs at the top of my lungs.
It is always a good time. This time it will be at an outdoor venue in Cleveland, past venues have included Columbus, Louisville, Kentucky and Cleveland once again. And finally before I sign off for the night, here's their song celebrating July!
The Decemberists
July, July
It is always a good time. This time it will be at an outdoor venue in Cleveland, past venues have included Columbus, Louisville, Kentucky and Cleveland once again. And finally before I sign off for the night, here's their song celebrating July!
The Decemberists
July, July
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